YOUNG CREATIVES SHINE BRIGHT AT EMIRATES AIRLINE FESTIVAL OF LITERATURE
Students aged 9 to 25 years showcased their remarkable abilities in story writing, letter writing, crafts, poetry performance, and digital storytelling, plus their love for reading, highlighting the vibrant literary landscape that exists across the UAE.
Dubai, UAE, February 2025: The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature celebrated young literary talent at six prestigious Prize-Giving Ceremonies, recognising exceptional achievements in reading, writing, and creative expression across various competitions organised by their parent organisation, Emirates Literature Foundation.
Chevron Readers' Cup:
The 2024-2025 edition of this competition, which tests comprehension, mental recall, mindful reading, critical thinking, and encourages sportsmanship, saw a record number of entries with well over 5000 students participating in 1319 teams across the two age groups in Arabic and English from across the GCC, including KSA, Kuwait and UAE. A total of 42 teams in English and 40 teams in Arabic were shortlisted and battled it out at the highly competitive final rounds with winners taking away trophies for their school, individual medals for each team member and Magrudy's book vouchers valued at AED 1,000.
Chevron has been sponsoring the Readers' Cup for thirteen years and were present at the Prize-Giving Ceremony with Muhammad Al Sadek, Commercial & Government Relations Manager, Chevron and Renu Sharma, General Manager & Country Chair, UAE presenting the cup to the winners alongside representatives from Emirates Literature Foundation.
The top contenders in each age and language category were as below:
English Winner – Primary Age Group:
Pirates of the Page, GEMS Our Own English High School Al Warqa Dubai, (Girls branch)
English Winner – Secondary Age Group:
Secondary Team 1, Al Saad Indian School, Al Ain
Arabic Winner – Primary Age Group:
The Shining Stars, Dubai National School, Al Twaar, Dubai
Arabic Winner – Secondary Age Group:
The Novel Heroes, Dar Al Uloom Private School, Falaj Hazza', Abu Dhabi.
Emirates NBD Poetry for All:
This annual competition that completed its eighth cycle celebrates poetry performance and recital through a process that evaluates understanding, delivery, and fluency. The competition is open for UAE based students of all abilities, between the ages 8 and 18 years. This year, it has seen phenomenal examples of oral narration from 1381 students keeping the tradition of the Arab world truly alive.
The final performances were held at the Festival with poets Adrianne Kalfopoulou, Danabelle Gutierrez, Khairani Barokka and Safiya Sinclair assessing the English performers and Amal Al Sahlawi, Abdullatif Yousef and Jassim Al Obaidli assessing the Arabic performers.
In English, the first place winners in each age category were ages 8-13, Radhika Suresh, Abu Dhabi Indian School; ages 14-18 Gabriel Ricardo O. De Vera, The Philippine School; and ages 8-18 in Students of Determination category Aarav B, GEMS Modern Academy; Shaikha Ahmad Khalfan, Ajman Girls School for Secondary Education, Ajman; Umang Chugh, Pristine Private School, Dubai.
In Arabic, the first place winners in each age category were ages 8-13 and 14-18 (Faseeh), Yaseen Mukhtar, Dubai English Speaking School, Dubai and Yaseen Mousa, Dubai English Speaking School, Dubai, ages 8-13 and 14-18 (Nabati), Sultan Khalid Sultan Abdullah Al Shamsi, Applied Technology Schools (ATS) / Al Hili Campus, Abu Dhabi and Mohammed Fahad, Liwa International School, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, and ages 8-18 in Students of Determination Mozah Abdullah Saif Al Shamsi, Nima Primary School, Abu Dhabi; Jaser Ahmed Farraj, Al-Ahliya Charity Foundation, Dubai; Suleiman Khamees Suleiman Al-Kudaim, Zayed Educational Complex, Fujairah.
Arcadia Book in a Box:
Classes (and teachers) from primary schools across the UAE had fun in this unique competition that transcends the constraints of language to create a visual diorama of a book, or scene from a book, using recycled materials.
199 dioramas were submitted for consideration in round 1 with 15 shortlisted pieces on display for the enjoyment of the Festival visitors and for close evaluation by the judging panel which composed of two representatives from Arcadia British School and prominent illustrators Maitha Al Khayat, Megan Hess, and Alex Latimer.
Three winners were recognized with a plaque and a voucher (between AED 500 – 1,000) from Magrudy's bookstore. The winners are as follows:
Apple International School, 3B, The Pearl Diver GEMS International School, Falcon Bookclub, Jack and the Beanstalk Springdales School Dubai, Class 4, Kareem is Afraid of Ghosts Visitors Choice Award: Pristine Private School, Class 2A, Merkaat Mail
More details about the judging criteria and more photos of the winning entries can be found on the competition website.
DCT Children's Letter Writing Competition:
With the generous support of a new partner, Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi, UAE's beloved letter writing competition returned for another round of recognizing exemplary penmanship in the youth. The students were invited to write a letter to someone special exploring the theme of 'Imagine' and their letters delivered on both aesthetics and creativity.
What differentiates this competition from others is that not only does it encourage an interest in the forgotten art of handwriting, with 2174students from across the Emirates participating, but it also offers the winners an opportunity for an exclusive meet and greet with Vashti Hardy and Shaikha Al Zeyara, bestselling children's author from the Emirates LitFest 2025 programme. The Arabic judges are authors Shaikha Al Zeyara, Doha Khasawneh and Walid Taher, while the English judges are Beverly Jatwani, Daniela Tully, Ebtisam Al Beiti, Hilda Youseff, Kathy Urban and Saniya Chugtai.
The first-place winners in each age and language category were as below:
English Winner – Ages 8-10:
Hoor Nagdy Mostafa Kamal, New Dawn Private School, Dubai
English Winner – Ages 11-13:
Avika Singh, GEMS Millennium School Sharjah
English Winner – Ages 14 – 18:
Sashini Manikandan, Delhi Private School, Sharjah
Arabic Winner – Ages 8-10:
Leen Osama Abdelraof, Al Salam Community School, Dubai
Arabic Winner – Ages 11-13:
Shahd Hassan Alsewidan, Al Zallaqa School, Abu Dhabi
Arabic Winner – Ages 14 – 18:
Sarah Abdelaziz Abas AzizAllah Hussein, Dubai National School Al Barsha, Dubai.
Oxford University Press Story Writing Competition:
5366 students in the UAE and across the GCC vied for the chance to become published authors by submitting their stories on the theme of 'Imagine' for consideration by the judges of the Oxford University Press Story Competition.
In addition to their inclusion in the anthology, the students also had the honour to be judged by renowned authors and editors, April Hardy, Kathy Hoopmann, Kathy Butti and Annemieke Woodbridge and Arabic judges; May Chebaklo, Aya Qasem, Samar Mahfouz Barraj and Mohanad Al Akous.
In English, winners in each age category were ages 11 and under Hania Faisal, International School of Creative Science, Sharjah and Nishi Ramchandani Gems Our Own English High School, Dubai. Ages 12-14, Saanvi Kiran, Springdales School Dubai, Dubai, and ages 15-17, Alina Ann Vinu, Mayoor Private School, Abu Dhabi and ages 18-25, Sarah Aljabri, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi.
In Arabic, winners in each age category were ages 11 and under, Fatima Al Zahra Musab Abdallah Sulaiman, St Mary Catholic School, Fujairah and ages 12-14, Mahra Ali Abdallah Salem, Al Khatim School, Abu Dhabi, ages 15-17, Amal Mohamed, Madinat Zayed School C2,C3, Abu Dhabi and ages 18-25, Kulaitham Al Blooshi, Zayed University, Dubai.
Al Futtaim Digital Storytelling Competition:
Contenders of the second Al Futtaim Digital Storytelling Competition embraced storytelling in the new age by collaborating as teams to produce short-form (2-3 minutes long) vertical films inspired by their favourite book or poem in Arabic. The competition, which is open to students aged 12-18, is designed to help students develop their skills in creating content on their phones without compromising on creativity and quality.
Three winners, who were selected by a panel of luminaries in the education and media field, Ahmed Al Sadeq, Nahla Al Fahd and Hasna Khattab were recognized with a visit to MBC studio and book vouchers. The winners are as follows:
The Hope Generation, Deira International School, Dubai The Travelers, Al-Najah Girls' School – Cycle 2, 3, Ras Al Khaimah. Tina, Khadija Al Kubra Iranian Girls' Private School, Dubai.
The Emirates Airline Festival of Literature is the flagship event of the Emirates Literature Foundation, held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and Ruler of Dubai. The Festival is held with the support of Title Sponsor, Emirates Airline, and Founding Partner, Dubai Culture & Arts Authority.
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